Welcome to Drupal CMS: A look at the future of content management

Laura Murgia
Drupal cms

Originally developed under the code name"Drupal Starshot", the additional Drupal variant has now been officially launched as "Drupal CMS". This name emphasizes the purpose of the system and underlines its role as a content management solution. But what exactly is Drupal CMS and how does it differ from the regular Drupal 11?

How did Drupal CMS come about?

Drupal can be challenging for non-developers due to its complex architecture. With the increasing popularity of no-code solutions, Dries Buytaert, founder of Drupal, launched the "Starshot Initiative" at DrupalCon Portland. This united projects such as the Experience Builder, automatic updates, the Project Browser and the newly launched Drupal AI initiative under the mission to improve the user experience and make Drupal more accessible to individuals, small businesses and associations.

Drupal CMS and Drupal 11: What's the difference?

A common misconception is that Drupal CMS and Drupal 11 are the same thing. In fact, they are two different concepts:

Drupal Core:

When people talk about "Drupal", they are usually referring to "Drupal Core". Drupal (Core) has been the basis for a content management framework or a platform for digital projects for 24 years. Drupal Core forms the basis of all Drupal installations. However, "Drupal Core" is not a finished product, but a framework that requires technical knowledge or support from developers. Drupal 11 is the current main version of Drupal Core and offers technological enhancements and new functions.

Drupal CMS:

The Starshot initiative aimed to create a ready-to-use product based on Drupal Core. Drupal CMS combines the core with a set of predefined configurations and modules. As a result, Drupal CMS enables user-friendly, specific solutions that can be tested immediately and customized via drag-and-drop in the browser.

Drupal CMS is specifically designed to make it easy for individuals, site builders, small businesses and associations to create a classic website without in-depth Drupal knowledge. It provides a solid foundation for many projects and can serve as an entry-level solution that agencies can also build on.

For projects with a non-traditional CMS scope, Drupal 11 remains the ideal choice as a highly flexible framework.

The role of modules and recipes in Drupal CMS

Modules: The building blocks of Drupal

Modules are basic extensions that are necessary for every Drupal installation. They make Drupal CMS flexible and adaptable by making it possible to extend the functionality of websites in a targeted manner and meet individual requirements.

  • Use case: A module adds a specific function, such as an image gallery, a contact form or SEO optimization.
  • Flexibility: Modules are flexible and can be activated, deactivated or combined independently of each other, but often require additional configuration.
  • Examples:
    • Views: Enables the creation of user-defined data views.
    • Pathauto: Automatically generates search engine friendly URLs.
    • Commerce: Adds basic e-commerce functionality.
    • Webform: Provides a standard form that can be manually customized or extended.

Recipes: Predefined configurations for specific use cases

Recipes in Drupal CMS are preconfigured sets of modules and associated settings according to the best practices of the Drupal community. They thus represent functions that have been developed specifically for certain use cases and thus make the initial creation of these considerably easier. Recipes therefore offer standard solutions "out of the box".

  • Use case: Recipes enable users to provide fully preconfigured functionality, e.g. an online store, a blogging platform or a community website, with little effort.
  • Flexibility: Recipes offer a quick start and predefined solutions, but can be customized as required.
  • Examples:
    • E-commerce Recipe: Contains modules such as Commerce, Payment Gateway and Tax, preconfigured product pages and layouts.
    • Blogging-Recipe: Contains modules such as CKEditor, comments and tags as well as predefined SEO settings.

Example: Blog Recipe

After installing the blog recipe, the new content type "Blog" is added. When creating a blog content, a menu item "Blog" is automatically created with a preset landing page including Dynamic Entity Lists and the self-named tags are listed below. A well thought-out standard blog page is therefore created.

What does Drupal CMS offer? A brief overview

  1. Preconfigured settings for a quick start

Drupal CMS offers a collection of predefined configurations that are particularly useful for new web projects. This significantly reduces the initial configuration effort.

  1. Flexibility through modules and configurations

The integration and customization of modules and predefined settings allows websites to be specifically designed and tailored to a company's requirements.

  1. Improved user-friendliness

The modernized user interface builds on the GIN theme and integrates features such as:

  1. Future extension: Experience Builder

In future versions, Drupal CMS will introduce the Experience Bu ilder, which will further simplify the creation of pages using visual tools. This feature will be particularly beneficial for users without technical knowledge and will take user-friendliness to a new level.

  1. ECA (Event-Condition-Action)

The ECA module enables advanced automation and personalized user experiences. Users can define conditions that trigger certain actions and thus optimize workflows without programming.

Practical application examples

  1. New web projects
    • A startup plans to create a platform for community members. With Drupal CMS, they choose a configuration for community websites that already includes features such as forums, user profiles and a comment system.
  2. Quick adaptation to new requirements
    • A small company uses Drupal CMS for their corporate website. When launching a new product, they can add a suitable configuration for landing pages to optimize conversion.
  3. Long-term scalability
    • Thanks to the flexibility of the modules and configurations, Drupal CMS can grow with the requirements of a growing company.

Who is Drupal CMS suitable for?

Drupal CMS is particularly aimed at:

  • Private individuals and site builders: Drupal CMS is ideal for individuals who want to create a website quickly and easily. With preconfigured solutions, they can get started immediately, even without technical know-how.
  • Small businesses and associations: Companies and organizations that need a classic corporate website benefit from the user-friendly and ready-to-use features. Drupal CMS offers a solid foundation for websites that look professional with little effort.
  • Agencies and freelancers: For projects that require a quick and efficient basis, Drupal CMS offers an effort-reducing initial solution. This can be easily extended and adapted by agencies to meet specific requirements.

Drupal CMS is perfect for those looking for an "out-of-the-box" solution without knowledge of Drupal best practices or experience with previous Drupal projects. For more complex projects with special requirements, Drupal 11 remains the preferred choice as a flexible framework.

Conclusion: Drupal CMS - out-of-the-box, flexible and efficient

Drupal CMS offers a powerful basis for many web projects that can be launched with minimal effort. It also enables users with no previous experience to achieve results quickly. For more complex projects that go beyond the classic CMS scope, Drupal 11 remains the ideal choice. Together with Drupal agencies such as arocom, companies can extend the functionality of Drupal CMS and customize it to specific requirements.

We look forward to discovering the versatility and efficiency of Drupal CMS with our customers and developing future-proof solutions together!

Further information:

Tag cloud